536 



THE TROPICAL AGRICULTURIST. 



[January i, 1883. 



cannot be made to show a less profit than £10 an acre 

 at present prices. 



Sabah is almost alone one country in which these 

 lowland growths can be produced without over great 

 fear of loss of health to the pliinier ; though frequf-mly 

 (but not always) hot enough in the middle of the 

 day, the nights are always cool, whereby that lowering 

 of the constitution caused by constant never-remitting 

 heit is avoided, and every morning one is able lo 

 return to work as fresh almost as though in England 

 itself, while as for the thermometer, it is not a very 

 uncommon thing for it to be marking a minimum 

 amongst the sixties, 75° being looked upon as some- 

 what high for the minimum ; with regard to health, 

 Elopura itself is stated to be absolutely free from fever, 

 it being boasted of it that not one single indigenous 

 case has been known since it first commenced to be 

 dug out of the forest three years ago ; too much 

 stress must not be laid on this fact, however, for in 

 the rich lowlands of ths rivers on the South side of 

 Sandakan harbour where the plantations will chiefly 

 be, there is fever no doubt, but by a judicious selec- 

 tion of site and a careful eye to the feeding of the 

 plantation hands, this danger may be minimised almost 

 to nothing ; but the appointment of a Government 

 Inspector, competent to judge of the healthiness of 

 coolie lines and to keep an eye over the food supplied, 

 ■would be a great boon to the planting interest. 



With an abundant supply of labor in China, but 

 five days away ; a climate which enables Europeans 

 to go in for the more highly remunerative lowland 

 products ; an almost endless amount of frontage 

 on fresh water rivers within six hours of export 

 and import steamers' sides ; with direct commu- 

 nication by regular steamers with absolute ports 

 of consumption in Australia aud also in China 

 whereby all the cost of transhipments, sales from 

 one set of hands to another, several coolie 

 hires, storages, lighterages, &c., as in most other 

 countries, are avoided. With all these advantages, 

 -what wouder that applications are pouring in so as 

 already to have reached scores of thousands of acres ? 



While on this subject, we may mention that 

 clauses Nos. 13 and 14 of the Laud Kegulatious 

 are very generally objected to, and it is to be 

 hoped that they may be abolished.— " Burong Tioug" 

 in "Straits Times." 



VINE CULTURE IN JAFFNA, CEYLON: 

 Eably vine cnLTUKE— Dearth of infoemation about the 



INTRODUCTION OP TEH YiNE INTO JaMNA — NATURE OF 



Tamil histories— Vine culture under the Dutch— 



AOCOUNT of AN OLD VINE BY A RESIDENT— ENCOURAGK- 

 MENT OF VINE CULTURE BY THE LATE MK. JJVEE — 



Peesent cdniution — Vine seasons — Favorite vine 

 MANURES — Conditions of successful vine culture- 

 Vines AT OUTSTATIoNS IN THE KORTH. 

 The vine has been cultivated in Jafifna from the 

 time of the Dutch, but that it was introduced at 

 a much earlier date is very probable. To wnom 

 the Xamils are indebted lor its introduction is not 

 kuown to me. The writers on Ceylon, in their ad- 

 miration of the rich and fertile regions in the inter- 

 ior of the island, have bestowed but little atteuiion 

 on the people aud )n-oclucts of the north — a portion 

 much h'fls tavored by nature than the other parts 

 of the island. The histories in Tamil are little bet- 

 ter than romances, probably because the Tamils, like 

 their bretbreo of the contiuent, delight in love stor- 

 ies. The dearth of historical information about 

 the introduction of the vine is also due, in a great 

 measure, to the fact that, though vine culture was 

 a favorite occupation of the Dutch, it was never 

 • prosecuted on a large scale. When JaH'na passed into 

 the hands of the British, there was in the Pettah 

 hardly a house without a vine. Tradition has 



handed down that during the lime of the Dutch a 

 young Burgher drunk with the grapes obtained from the 

 vine in his father's garden, was not an untrequent ex- 

 l«rienoe. Upon the acquisition of Jaffna by the British, 

 the rich Dutch residents by degrees quitted the place : 

 the others remained and were soon gathered to 

 their fathers and their properties passed into the 

 hands of the Tamils, who were rapidly flocking into 

 the town, availing themselves of the liberty and 

 privileges granted by the British Government. At the 

 present day, excepting a few properties owned by the 

 TouBsaints, the Pettah is to a great extent in the 

 possession of Tamils : and Jaffna from being a 

 Dutch town, has become the leading Tamil town of 

 the island. The new owners, though aware of the 

 value of the vine, neglected it, and its cultivation began 

 to decline. The Jaffna Tamil is eminently a practi- 

 cal character, especially in matters in which his pocket 

 is likely to be affected. Good as is Jaffna for 

 the vine, the expenditure of money and trouble neces- 

 sary to ensure success in vine culture are considered 

 too great and ouly the well-to-do care for it. 



A Burgher of Jaffna, aged nearly three-score years 

 and five, now in Colombo, who during his residence 

 in Jaffna successfully carried on viue culture, sup- 

 plies me with the following account of a vine tree 

 once known in Jaffna as the oldest. lu 1830, in a 

 house owne.'l then by one Mr. Melder aud situated 

 at the Second Cross Street, there was a tree aged at 

 the time appareutly 25 years. It yielded the best 

 and largest grapes and was well known over the 

 place. The property, upon the death of the owner, 

 passed into the hands of one Gooddubawa, who still 

 retains it. He carried on a good trade in grapes. 

 The tree lived till 1868 in pretty f;iir condition, 

 but the produce having declined, h was rooted out 

 by the owner to make room for new grafts. 



Neglected as was vine culture by the 'Tamils, that 

 distinguished civilian and successful administrator, 

 Mr. P. A. Dyke, whose name still lives in the affec- 

 tionate remembrance of the people of Jaffna, and of 

 whose taste for gardening, the kachcheri garden, 

 until recently cut down and ppoilt by a successor, 

 was a remarkable and pleasing proof, rendered 

 material service towards improving viue culture. In 

 his day, the kachcheri garflen was much admired by 

 high officials visiting Jaffna on duty. Not the least 

 feature of it was the variety of the vines successfully 

 grown. To the kind already known in the place, 

 Mr. Dyke added some two new species. All grew 

 well and produced good results and civilian friends 

 at outstations aud even Governors were supplied with 

 grapes, from the kaohclierri garden. An Italian gar- 

 dener brought to Jalfna by Bishop Betchchinni,* was 

 employed in the introd.ictiou aud cultivation of the new 

 species. Some tress still exist, but the best have perished. 

 Still there are in Jaffna some t;ood vines. lu the 

 property known as " Leeinbruggeo's house," — from its 

 original occupant, the late Mr. Leembruggen, head clerk 

 of the kachcherri and — now in the Jaffna Post Office, 

 there is a fine tree and it yields well. Another tree, 

 or rather a group of trees, equally fine aud productive, 

 is in de Bevy's garden, now owned by Proctor Tainpu, 

 who is one of the few Tamils cultivating the vine 

 with care and industry. There are some more trees 

 in the town, and it is their profince which is brought to 

 meet the demand in Cidombo bj' petty traders. 



The vine in Jaffna lias tvvo seasons, i.e., it yields twice 

 in a year. The firtt season commeuces in February 

 or March, when it is pruned and manured in antici- 

 pation of blossmn : and the second season commences 

 in July or August. At the approach of each season 

 the tree is well pruned by meu to whom pruning is 

 a profession, the grouud at the foot is dug out, the 



* This was the first Roman Bishop of Jaffna. 



